May wouldn’t have wanted trouble from six-foot-two Vernon.
“He said he’s a handyman, but there’s no evidence of that.”
“Thank you, Vernon. We’re looking for him to question him.”
“Is he connected to Emily’s death?” Vernon looked concerned.
“We don’t have proof of that, but we need to confirm where he was at the time of the crime. Do you know where he stays?”
“Yeah, I do know, because on the night when he tried to chat up one of our customers, I escorted him home,” Vernon said firmly, pointing across the road. “He’s set up a tent on the vacant plot of land just down there. You know, by the sand road, near the construction site where the new apartments are being built? If he had anything to do with Emily’s death, I hope you arrest him and he never sees the outside of a jail cell again,” Vernon promised.
“Thank you,” May said. “If he’s anything more than a harmless drifter, we’ll be arresting him immediately.”
With another wave to Tammy, she and Owen rushed across the road together.
Now that they knew where Joey was located, there was no time to lose in speaking to him.
May could see the construction site ahead, a dusty place with barriers in place cordoning off the working areas. At this time of night, there were only a couple of trucks still busy, and operations were wrapping up for the day. A few construction workers in reflective vests were walking through the site.
To the right of this site, May saw the area of vacant land where the opportunistic Joey had set up camp. There it was, a pale green tent, surprisingly large.
And there was someone walking to it. Her heart quickened. This must be him. Now they could find out what he’d been up to, and whether there was any evidence on his person or in his tent linking him to this crime.
“Joey Robbins?” May called, getting close enough to see the paleness of the denim jacket in the gloom. “We’re police officers. We’d like to talk to you.”
The man looked around. In the muted glow of the streetlight, May could see he looked appalled to see them there.
Without hesitating or even speaking a word to them, Joey turned and ran, bolting down the sand alleyway between the vacant land and the construction site.
CHAPTER SIX
May ran after Joey Robbins as fast as she could. There wasn’t a moment to waste, because this man was a drifter, a person who had no ties or connections to this town, and could disappear as swiftly as he’d arrived.
If she didn’t catch him now, there was a strong chance he would melt away, hiding from the law for weeks or months or even forever. And the fact he was running already proved that he was not an innocent man.
“Stop!” she yelled.
She charged after him. With her boots pounding in the red dust, she sped along the road, pushing herself hard, faster and faster.
“Stop!” she yelled again.
He was fast, she had to give him that. He was sprinting like lightning over the uneven ground, and probably knew this terrain much better than she did, considering he’d been living here for a couple of weeks.
“Joey Robbins, we need to speak to you!” she yelled again, because he was still running.
She forced herself to run with the speed and purpose of her prey, because she knew she could simply not afford for him to outpace her. He had to be stopped, and she had to do it. She couldn’t let him get away.
May knew she had to trust in herself and in her own fitness and training. She went for runs on the lakeside trails three times a week. She was fast over uneven ground, and she needed to believe she was fit enough to keep pace with him. Surely he couldn’t keep up this speed, not once the adrenaline rush of seeing the police had abated.
She ran hard, trying to stride confidently over the rough terrain, letting her body find the right rhythm and her eyes focus on what could be seen in the near-blackness.
“Mr. Robbins! We need to speak to you!” Owen yelled, pounding behind her. She felt massively grateful for his backup, and that he was there with her. Her deputy was flinging himself headlong into this pursuit with the same determination as she was.
Joey veered to the right, heading toward the sandy parking lot and the construction site. May picked up the pace, fixed her attention on his pale denim jacket, moving ahead of her. She realized with a twist of anxiety that she wasn’t going to get to him fast enough. He was going to flee into the site. He must have a plan in mind, but she couldn’t work out what it was. It was very possible there was a route out the back of the site that he knew about. In the dark, in this big, chaotic area, it would be very easy for him to lose them. The back of the site led into the built-up area of town, with high-density offices, alleyways, and no shortage of hiding places.
With a surge of effort, she picked up her pace and ran down the slippery, sandy incline into the site itself. Her breathing was ragged, but she knew she couldn’t stop yet. She had to outrun him. Or outmaneuver him. Or preferably both. At any rate, by the time she left this site, it needed to be with Joey Robbins in her custody.
The site was lonely and semi-dark. Only the chugging of one or two vehicles could be heard in that lonely place. Most of the spotlights were turned off now, with only a couple left shining near the entrance, and in the area that was still being flattened. The drone of machinery grew louder as they approached.